Act II, Scene II Calpurnia, Caesar's wife, is wracked by horrible nightmares which she relates to Caesar in the morning

in an attempt to keep him from the Senate. She dreams that she sees him bleeding to death at the foot of his statue in the Senate. Although Calpurnia initially convinces Caesar to stay home, one of the conspirators, Decius Brutus, comes to his house and reinterprets Calpurnia's dream to indicate that the blood she has seen is Caesar's generosity to the people of Rome. He also convinces the proud Caesar that to stay away from the Senate would indicate to the Romans that he did not deserve their respect or honor. Thus, Caesar decides to go the Senate after all. Act III, Scene I Metellus Cimber, a member of the conspiracy, bows before Caesar and asks him to pardon his brother, whom Caesar has banished from Rome. Meanwhile, Trebonius takes Antony away from the center of action, and other members of the conspiracy gather round Caesar, ostensibly to support Metellus Cimber in his request. Caesar refuses, describing himself as a strong, steady, and unmoving moral compass among men who sway back and forth according to what is popular: Caesar: "So in the world: 'tis furnished well with men, And men are flesh and blood, and apprehensive; yet in the number I do know but one that unassailable holds on his rank, unshak'd of motion; and that I am he, let me a little show it, even in this, that I was constant Cimber should be banished, and constant do remain to keep him so." This is all the incitement the conspirators need, and they move to slay Caesar. Casca begins by stabbing him in the back of the neck, followed by the rest of the group, and, finally, by Marcus Brutus, who stabs him in the heart. As Caesar is stabbed, he says to Brutus, "Et tu, Brute? - Then fall Caesar!" He asks Pubilus, an elderly senator who did not flee with the rest, to help him calm the crowd, then announces that the bloodshed is over, and gathers the conspirators together around the body of Caesar. They each cover their arms with Caesar's blood to mark them as members of the conspiracy. As the group prepares to set out triumphantly through Rome, one of Mark Antony's servants appears with a message of loyalty from Mark Antony. Brutus believes this statement of loyalty, but Cassius remains skeptical that this is in fact the case. Antony enters then, and expresses grief over the body of Caesar before approaching the conspirators to pledge his allegiance to the new leaders of Rome. He makes only one request: that he be allowed to bear Caesar's body to the center of Rome and make a eulogy for Caesar before the crowd. When Brutus agrees to this concession, Cassius takes him aside and expresses his worry that Antony may still do something to hurt the conspirators. Brutus brushes these concerns aside, saying that he will speak to the crowd first, explaining to them that he killed Caesar not out of vengeance, but out of a concern for the welfare of the citizens of Rome. The conspirators exit and Antony falls over Caesar to express his grief. Act III, Scene II Brutus gives his speech, with his reasons for killing Caesar: "If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Caesar's, to him I say that Brutus' love to Caesar was no less than his. If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer: Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more." He then leaves as Antony begins to speak. Antony proceeds to incite the crowd against Brutus and his co-conspirators with irony and mockery by saying, "The noble Brutus hath told you Caesar was ambitious. If it were so, it was a grievous fault, and grievously hath Caesar answered it. Here under leave of Brutus and the rest (for Brutus is an honorable man, so are they all, all honorable men) come I to speak in Caesar's funeral. He was my friend, faithful and just to me; but Brutus says he was ambitious, and Brutus is an honorable man. He hath brought many captives home to Rome, whose ransoms did the general coffers fill: did this in Caesar seem ambitious? When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept; Ambition should be made of sterner stuff: Yet Brutus says he was ambitious, and sure he is an honorable man....I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke, but here I am to speak what I do know." He even goes as far as to insult the co-conspirators, and claim that they killed Caesar out of jealousy: "They that have done this deed are honorable. What private griefs they have, alas, I know not, that made them do it. They are wise and honorable, and will, no doubt, with reasons answer you. I come not, friends, to steal away your hearts. I am no orator, as Brutus is, but (as you know me all) a plain blunt man, that love my friend; and that they know full well that gave me public leave to speak of him." In the end, he pulls out Caesar's Will, which bequeaths all of Caesar's private gardens and walkways to the people of Rome. This is the final straw against the conspirators because it proves to the commoners that Caesar would have been a just ruler, and not at all ambitious, which is exactly why Brutus said he killed him.